Chapter 219: Chapter Two Hundred and Nineteen

Chapter Two Hundred and Nineteen

Alicia’s POV

For three days, nothing happened.

Three days of waiting for Robert to appear. Three days of jumping at every sound, checking the locks obsessively, keeping Lia closer than necessary. Three days of Malachi prowling the villa like a caged animal, his phone constantly in his hand, waiting for updates from Maurice or Marco or anyone who might have found my father.

But there was nothing. No sightings. No leads. No trace.

"He’s vanished," Maurice reported on day four. "Every contact I have, every source, nothing. It’s like he disappeared completely."

"People don’t just disappear," Malachi said, his voice tight with frustration. "Not without help. Someone’s hiding him."

I sat in the nursery rocking Lia even though she was already asleep, needing the repetitive motion to calm my own nerves. My father was out there somewhere. Free. Dangerous. And I knew him well enough to know he wouldn’t let this go. Wouldn’t just disappear and start a new life somewhere.

He’d come for me eventually. For money or revenge or both.

The question was when.

Sophie called that evening, her voice shaky. "Alessandro told me about Dad. About him escaping."

"You’re safe at school. Alessandro has people watching you."

"I’m not worried about me. I’m worried about you and Lia. What if he shows up there? What if he tries to take Lia or hurt you or—"

"He won’t get that far. We have security. Both families are looking for him. He’s one desperate man. He can’t win this."

"He’s desperate and he knows you. Knows how you think. That makes him dangerous."

She wasn’t wrong. My father had spent years manipulating me, controlling me, using my own fears against me. He knew exactly which buttons to push.

"I’m being careful," I told her. "We all are."

After we hung up, I found Malachi in his office staring at his computer screen with the kind of intensity that meant he was working on something important.

"What are you doing?"

"Tracking financial records. If Robert escaped, he needs money. He’ll have to access funds somewhere, use a credit card, withdraw cash. Something that will leave a trail."

"He’s smarter than that. He’ll use cash he already had hidden. Or he’ll steal. Or he’ll—" I stopped, a horrible thought occurring to me. "What if he contacts the Morettis directly? Demands money for information about me?"

"Marco would tell me immediately. And then we’d use the contact to track him."

"Unless he doesn’t call Marco. Unless he calls someone else in the family. Someone who might be sympathetic. Someone who might—"

My phone rang. Unknown number.

We both stared at it.

"Don’t answer it," Malachi said.

"It could be about the foundation. Could be a woman who needs help."

"Or it could be him."

The phone kept ringing. Four rings. Five.

I answered. Put it on speaker.

"Hello?"

Silence. Then breathing. Heavy breathing like someone who’d been running.

"Alicia." My father’s voice. Rougher than I remembered. Desperate. "I know you’re there. I know you can hear me."

Malachi stood immediately, already typing something on his laptop. Probably trying to trace the call.

"What do you want?" I asked, keeping my voice steady even though my hands were shaking.

"What I’ve always wanted. What you owe me. You’re living in luxury in Italy with your rich families while I’m running for my life. That’s not fair, Alicia. That’s not right."

"You tried to sell Sophie. You terrorized us for years. You don’t get to talk about what’s fair."

"I’m your father. You owe me respect. You owe me support. I raised you, fed you, kept a roof over your head—"

"You did the bare minimum required by law and made sure we knew it was a burden every single day. You don’t get credit for that."

"I want money. One million dollars. Wired to an account I’ll give you. That’s all. Then I disappear. You never hear from me again."

"No."

"No?" He laughed, bitter and harsh. "You think you can just say no? I know where you live, Alicia. I know about your daughter. About your precious Lia. It would be a shame if something happened to her. If I showed up one day when you weren’t being careful—"

"You threaten my daughter again and I’ll kill you myself," I said, my voice colder than I’d ever heard it. "I’m not the scared girl you used to control. I’m not trapped anymore. I have resources and family and a husband who will end you if you come anywhere near us."

"Big talk from someone who used to cry when I raised my voice."

"I grew up. I got strong. And I’m done being afraid of you."

Malachi was gesturing frantically at his laptop. He’d traced the call. He’d found him.

"You have forty-eight hours to get me the money," Robert continued. "Or I start making problems. I go to the press with the whole sordid story. The affair with your brother-in-law. The baby. The scandal. I’m sure they’d love to hear all about it."

"Go ahead. We already went public with our story. There’s nothing you can tell them that they don’t already know."

More silence. He hadn’t expected that.

"Then I’ll come after Sophie. She’s easier to get to. All alone at that school—"

"She’s protected by Alessandro’s security team. You won’t get within a hundred feet of her."

"You think you’re so safe. So protected. But everyone makes mistakes. Everyone lets their guard down eventually. And when you do, I’ll be there. Waiting. Watching. Ready to take what I’m owed."

"You’re owed nothing. You’re a coward and a bully and a failure of a father. And if you come near my family, if you threaten my daughter again, you won’t have to worry about Malachi or the Morettis. I’ll handle you myself."

I hung up. Immediately started shaking so hard I had to sit down.

Malachi was beside me instantly, pulling me into his arms. "You were incredible. Strong and fierce and everything he wasn’t expecting."

"I threatened to kill my own father."

"You protected our daughter. There’s a difference."

"Did you trace it?"

"Yes. He’s in Rome. About forty minutes from here. Maurice is already mobilizing a team."

"You’re going after him."

"We’re going after him. He threatened Lia. That’s not something I can let stand."

"What are you going to do when you find him?"

He looked at me with those dark eyes that had once terrified me and said with absolute certainty, "Whatever is necessary to make sure he never threatens our family again."

The doorbell rang.

We both froze. It was nearly eight PM. No one should be at the door.

"Stay here," Malachi said, already moving toward the stairs.

"I’m coming with you."

"Alicia—"

"He’s my father. If he’s at that door, I’m facing him. I’m done hiding."

We went downstairs together. Malachi checked the security camera first.

A woman stood on our doorstep. Dark hair. Expensive clothes. Unfamiliar.

Malachi opened the door cautiously, keeping me behind him.

"Can I help you?"

"I’m looking for Alicia Blackwood," the woman said. Her voice was cultured. Professional. "My name is Catherine Morrison. We have a meeting scheduled for tomorrow about the foundation director position, but I have urgent information that couldn’t wait."

"What kind of information?" I asked, stepping around Malachi.

Catherine looked at me directly. "About Robert Chen Fonelle. I know where he is. I know what he’s planning. And I know how to stop him."

"How do you know about my father?"

"Because he approached me three days ago. Tried to hire me to help him get to you. To help him get the money he thinks you owe him." She paused. "I’m a former FBI agent specializing in domestic terrorism and hostage negotiations. And your father just made the biggest mistake of his life by trying to recruit me."

Malachi and I exchanged glances.

"You better come inside," I said.

Catherine stepped into our home, and I had the distinct feeling that everything was about to change.

"Where is he?" Malachi asked.

Catherine pulled out her phone, showed us a location pin. "A motel on the outskirts of Rome. He’s there right now. But that’s not the most important thing I need to tell you."

"What is?"

"He’s not working alone. He has a partner. Someone with resources and connections. Someone who’s been helping him plan this whole thing." She looked at me with something like pity in her eyes. "Someone you know. Someone from your past."

"Who?" I demanded.

Catherine pulled up a photo on her phone. Showed it to us.

The ground dropped out from under me.

"No," I whispered. "That’s not possible."

Malachi looked at the phone, his entire body going rigid.

"Who is it?" he asked, his voice deadly calm.

Catherine looked between us. "His partner is someone named Travis Blackwood. Your brother. And apparently, he has plans for both of you."